


Untitled Bar fic

by ascoolsuchasi



Category: X-Men - All Media Types, X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Alcohol as an escape, Arrogant Bastard is actually a beer did you know?, Erik as an escape, M/M, Modern AU, X-Men First Class Kink Meme, domestic abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-30
Updated: 2012-06-30
Packaged: 2017-11-08 21:06:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,220
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/447570
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ascoolsuchasi/pseuds/ascoolsuchasi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i> Something clicks in Erik and it all makes since now. Sebastian. Sebastian who swore he’d leave Charles alone and a week later claimed to be his boyfriend. Sebastian whom he’d put his trust in.</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Untitled Bar fic

**Author's Note:**

> TW for warnings for inebriation, domestic abuse, swearing

Erik walks behind the bar and sets a hand on Charles’ shoulder, missing the way he stiffens and winces at the touch. He’s wearing another one of those dark coloured button ups with the sleeves pulled down past his hands, Erik notices. And his hand’s around a half empty tumbler. _For a customer_ Erik thinks _it has to be. Charles said he wouldn’t..._

 

“Hey,” Charles says sort of hoarsely and quiet, “what’s up?”

 

Erik smiles and shakes his head. He pretends not to smell the vodka that Charles has been drinking. “Nothing much.” 

 

He looks towards a gruff looking guy with side burns that bring a whole new meaning to the phrase mutton chops at the end of the bar and walks towards him. “You need anything?”

 

The guy looks to him and cocks his head to the side. He squints his eyes and says, “Jack and coke.”

 

Erik nods and gives him a half smile before saying, “No problem.” and walking back to Charles to grab the whiskey.

 

He’s handing off the drink when Charles comes up to him and tells him he’s going to take a smoke break and can you cover my area for maybe...fifteen- twenty minutes at the most? Thanks so much my friend, you’re truly the best.

 

Erik watches as Charles walks out the back and sighs. He looks down to the counter and half laughs, half chokes back anger when he sees Charles’ pack of Camels.

 

He tries not to think about how quiet everything is without Charles, despite the rowdy bout of drunk in the corner booths. It’s Sebastian's night off. He tries not to think of that either.

 

“Hey!”

 

Erik looks over to where he’s been called. It’s Alex. He leans forward onto the counter top and smiles.

 

“Alex, what can I get for you?”

 

Alex scratches at his head and laughs. 

 

“‘kay, this is gonna sound totally off, but can I get an Arrogant Bastard? Do you sell those?”

 

Erik looks to him dubiously and says _no_ flatly.

 

Alex laughs again, all teeth and smiles. “Yeah, alright. Dos Equis then and uh, a Miller for Sean.”

 

“Sure.” Erik bends down to grab a couple glasses.

 

“So, where’s Charles?”

 

Erik slows the till. He looks up to Alex. “Out back on break. Why?”

 

Alex shakes his head and scrunches up his face. “No reason. He’s just- seems off, yeah?”

 

Erik finishes filling up the glasses and hands them over to Alex, pointedly ignoring his words.

 

“Here.”

 

Alex smiles again and Sean comes up behind him, grabbing one of the beers. “Thanks man.”

 

Erik nods and smiles.

When he turns around to the other side of the bar, he sees Charles is back. All mussed hair and red faced. Erik pretends he doesn’t know what he was up to outside when he walks over, slinging an arm around him.

 

“How about we go grab something after shift?” He asks into his ear.

 

A brown haired girl comes up and asks for a martini. Erik smiles, and misses the way Charles flinches as he slides his arm on the wrong side of just fast from his shoulders. He gets out the shaker.

 

“I can’t, you know that.” Charles stares down at the bar top and then down to the other end; there isn’t anyone. He looks back to Erik.

 

Erik rolls his eyes. “‘course I do. Come on, just a little won’t hurt. Just as friends.”

 

Charles’ big, blue eyes search Erik’s face and he sighs. “I- okay. Yeah. I’m sure...he won’t...mind.”

 

Erik gives him too big of a smile and slaps him playfully on the back. Charles sort of flinches and smiles back but it doesn’t reach his eyes, not even close.

 

***

 

It’s a couple hours after their shift and they’re at some shitty all night dinner. They’re laughing over industrial eggs and bacon and arse flavoured coffee.

 

Charles is waving his hands about and talking about something related to Pluto not being a planet anymore and how it’s complete bull shit. 

 

Erik looks at Charles wrist where his shirt has fallen up his arms and isn’t covering anymore by chance. His eyebrows knit in a sick fusion of concern and confusion. He cocks his head to the side.

 

“Charles...What’s- why is your wrist- Are those...Fuck, Charles what happened?”

 

Charles glances down at his arms and then back up to Erik and gulps. He tugs his sleeves back down. 

 

“Nothing Erik. It’s nothing.”

 

“Like hell it is.” He makes a grab for Charles’ hands. “What happened?”

 

Charles winces and pulls back further. 

 

“Stop it Erik. ‘s nothing. You’re making a scene.”

 

Erik looks at Charles- searching, mouth spread into a thin line.

 

“This isn’t ‘nothing’ Charles. Why do your arms look like they’ve just come out of one of those _Saw_ movies?”

 

“Really Erik,” Charles says weakly, “it’s nothing. I just- I- miscalculated how h- It’s nothing, stop looking at me like that. Fuck Erik,” he wraps his arms close to his body, “it’s nothing.”

 

Erik slides out the booth and moves to sit himself down next to Charles. He holds out his hands and doesn’t say anything.

 

Charles glares at him and scoots farther away.

 

“Charles. Let me see.” Erik turns his head to looks at Charles and says quietly, softly, “I’m not going to hurt you.”

 

Charles snaps.

 

“I know you aren’t! Fuck. Erik, just stop. Just. Fucking. Stop.”

 

“Charles...”

 

Charles sinks lower in his seat, looks away, and pretends he never said anything. 

 

“I’m not going to break- just stop...Please. It was an accident.”

 

Erik stands. “C’mon. Bathroom now.”

 

Charles ducks his head, scoots off the bench, and follows Erik.

 

In the stark, near yellow lighting, Charles looks pale and sunken eyed. Erik can’t get over how he never noticed this before.

 

“Take off your shirt.”

 

“Erik, I-”

 

“Charles.”

 

Charles sighs and with shaky fingers unbuttons his shirt and shrugs it off his shoulders. He doesn’t look Erik in the face when he hears his sharp intake of breath.

 

“Who did this?”

 

Charles’ torso is littered with dark green-purple bruises and jagged red cuts and burns from cigarettes and lighters and fuck who knows what else. Erik doesn’t know if there’s any bit of Charles that isn’t riddled with knots and new forming scars.

 

“It was a- I deserved it.”

 

Erik tears his eyes away from Charles chest.

 

“Charles, no one does. Who did this?”

 

Charles eyes go glassy and he looks away. Something clicks in Erik and it all makes since now. Sebastian. Sebastian who swore he’d leave Charles alone and a week later claimed to be his boyfriend. Sebastian whom he’d put his trust in. Sebastian who he-

 

“C’mon. Charles get up. C’mon,” he grabs Charles’ shirt from the floor and tosses it over to him, “we’re going. Put on your shirt. We’re leaving. Now.”

 

He grabs Charles’ hand and tugs, trying to ignore the way Charles winces.

 

When they make it to Erik’s truck, Charles asks, “Where are we going?”

 

Erik turns on the ignition and pulls into reverse. He ignores Charles’ question.

 

“What about Sebastian?”

 

They’re almost out of the parking lot. Erik turns his head towards Charles for a moment, takes in his panicked look in his too blue eyes.

 

“Fuck. Sebastian.” 

 

And turns out on to the street.


End file.
